Tristanus said:
Point on the militia, although one could argue the organized and sanctioned parts of those, however.
The Mormons have had the same "militia" from 1857, right? Just checking.
Saint_Proverbius said:
It wouldn't mean they were wrong, it would just mean that they aren't totally vocal about it. What would mean they were wrong is what J.E. Sawyer said about Mormons either ceasing to exist OR getting taken over by a drug smuggler.
Sorry, but as someone who does have a bit of common sense, I really don't count anything that is based off of fiction under a thousand years old as a religion, or for that matter, 200 years. Tax breaks from the govt. doesn't mean a thing, as the IRS sold out many peoples' legal standing in in lieu of being bribed by the Scientologists. Different century, different fiction. This nation is due for another large money-based cult in about eighty years, so don't take it too harshly when I say it's fine to deal with the Mormons and Scientologists enough in real life (and feel fortunate, those of you who have not had to deal with these people before or as frequently as I have). More than that is pushing it. The Mormons shouldn't consider themselves any more special than some inbred fundamentalist Christian who got upset about how their faith wasn't represented in the previous Fallout games. After all, there was other places than Utah in the Fallout setting, so if it's common that the religions aren't included, then why should the Mormons be special and be included? That implies insult towards those who aren't, doubly so because they have to deal with a cult in their game as well when their own faith wasn't represented, and there's a SHITLOAD more popululate religions all around the nation. That is the first aspect of the religion tarbaby in sci-fi, is that people will dismiss material like this if it includes laughable elements in such a way, or they will not like it, to continue your example, if it shows their faith in turn "didn't make it".
Yes, I know that the Mormons would be the perfect real world cult to have in the post-apocalypse, regardless of what fiction they add enough Jesus to make what they believe in saleable. I would also find it ironic that a religious sect founded by a fraud could be conceivably the last, best possibility of humankind surviving if they were prepared for it, but I really wouldn't put much faith on how intelligent passing alien races would think of us then, and I would have told The Master to go ahead (heh, ultimate irony? "FUCK! We
needed The Master's army!"). At that point, strip-mining Earth would be the most productive thing possible, on a cosmic scheme.
That doesn't mean that they belong in an alternate universe. The same could go for Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and the rest. Let me point it out for some who don't understand. The entire point of the post-apocalyptic genre is to see the rubble of today's civilization, or that of an alternate universe. To see things warped and in ruin. Not "cleansed", as certain dogma would dictate, but the removal of what made life so cushy.
Or, to put it into simple terms anyone could understand:
Mormons are a minority. Including them in would tend to make the game quite laughable, as generally everywhere BUT Utah, Mormons are considered a joke. They are the Scientologists of the 1800's. After all, in Fallout's world, they never found the transistor. Maybe in Fallout's world, Joseph Smith didn't find the golden plates of Reformed Egyptian Hieroglyphics.
Hmmm, I don't see how that is any different from the real world. Let me rephrase that. Maybe in Fallout's world, this crock of shit was never entertained or the US gave the Mormons their own Waco in 1857, when it was clear to everyone they were a cult. After all, the US was ballsy enough to annex Canada in the setting. Yet, I suppose collowing the remains of cults are in fashion as of late, since being "Thug" was/is "in" for the young crowd.
But hey, if it gets the cult into one of the top fifty businesses in the US, who am I to complain, right? It seems that anyone with a bit of money and people willing to believe their story can found a "religion". After all, the US is a Capitalist society, and the real God is the dollar. If I had the inclination to swallow my integrity and throw around some money to start the same (and I could easily come up with a better piece of background fiction), I could start something that could have some religious standing after I'm dead and gone, just because people believed the fraud. Since I do value my integrity, no. That still doesn't stop me from enjoying one of the great internet pasttimes - toying with cults.
if it was in the game i would laugh even more, because something strange would have happened to actually let it pass the threshold of usage. but then i'd feel bad afterwards.
